Gloucs’ effort satisfies boss Bell

IN HIS first match in charge of Gloucester, following the departure of Laurie Fisher, head coach Jonny Bell, said:

“We showed a huge amount of character and the leaders in the group have been fantastic and supportive in the last two weeks.

“It wasn’t pretty at times and there were a lot of inaccuracies, which will need rectifying but we dug deep and took our chances.

“We didn’t have enough ball in the first half and had to soak up a lot of pressure but we rolled our sleeves up to defend very well.

“The next four or five weeks is a mini-season for us. Cardiff next week in the Challenge Cup is a massive game.”

Bristol flanker Sam Jeffries was his side’s best player on his Premiership debut for the club.

He said: “It’s disappointing as we put in a lot of effort but we were beaten by a more clinical team in that second half.

“We had so much possession and territory but we just couldn’t finish it off. We’ve got to keep fighting but we have a real job on our hands.”